Adam Bradford, the senior product manager of upcoming D&D digital toolset D&D Beyond has answered a few questions about the product over at the Tribality website. You can read the full interview at the link below, but here are the highlights. Nothing major, but a few bits like filtering content, roadmap features like initiative trackers, color-coded tabs, etc.

Alpha testing is finished.

Beta testing emails go out "very soon".

The software has table with colour codes (see images above and below) to make it easy to tell where you are.

Adam has played D&D for 20 years.

Additional features later will include "encounter builder, combat/ initiative tracker, dice rolling and automation, stream integration, and much more".

There will be easy ways to filter content - for example "Want to see every spell that requires a Charisma saving throw in the game? Or every healing spell? Every spell that does force damage?"

Their license does not restrict them on delivery mechanisms. They "are fully aware of the offline capability concerns and are working to mitigate those concerns". A few days ago, WotC's Greg Tito confirmed"D&D Beyond will work without an internet connection. That's a big deal for the devs!"

This all sounds great, and I know it has been said before but pricing is going to be the key to this. I already own 2 copies of the players hand book and a copy of every other 5E book released. Plus copies of all those on FantasyGrounds as well. So if they can come up with a solution to not gouge the crap out of us it would be great.

Also I know they mention homebrew support but what about 3PP support or is that just going to have to be a homebrew import of some kind?

Another odd question. I DM a group of youth once or twice a month. Will there be a way to push content I have bought for them to use? I know fantasy grounds allows this when people are connected to my game and while I know that this is not a VTT I can see the usefulness of allowing the DM to share content he has purchased. I mean heck if we are being honest with ourselves the DM's are the ones who buy everything anyways (books, snacks, pencils, dice, paper, and the list goes on.)

The real question is price. Will we have a monthly fee? Have to re-buy every book again digitally? While this looks better then the free apps out there, price is going to be a huge factor. We shall see.

The beta will roll out in three major phases - we want to get focused use and feedback on each core feature. The first will include the Compendium with basic rules content and the three Listings (Spells, Magic Items, Monsters), as well as opening the Forums.

The second and third phases will introduce the Character Builder and Sheet, Homebrew, and the first pass of Campaign Management. We will push those live in the next several weeks ramping up to launch.

The beta will roll out in three major phases - we want to get focused use and feedback on each core feature. The first will include the Compendium with basic rules content and the three Listings (Spells, Magic Items, Monsters), as well as opening the Forums.

The second and third phases will introduce the Character Builder and Sheet, Homebrew, and the first pass of Campaign Management. We will push those live in the next several weeks ramping up to launch.

Hope to see you all there on Monday!

When phase 2 comes out does phase 1 go away? Or will we keep the compendiums when the second phase drops?

Will there be a way for me to develop homebrew content and then easily share with other users of the Curse app?
For example, I want to share a gazetteer of my homebrew world of mfonkia, could my players with the Curse app easily download and install my file?

The problem I have with these various digital tools is that they charge full book price for the content. It's digital, the cost should reflect that. Plus, you should be allowed to add your own content so that people who already own the books can just add it.

Can you at least give us a clue of the pricing model? One time purchase plus add-ons? Monthly subscription? 1 per group, or 1 per player?

Why do companies hide the pricing, but show off everything else? You're gonna have to tell me the price before I buy it. You're going to include lots of people in beta testing the product to see if it works like we want. Why is our opinion on the product valuable but our opinion on the pricing not wanted until its too late?

The beta will roll out in three major phases - we want to get focused use and feedback on each core feature. The first will include the Compendium with basic rules content and the three Listings (Spells, Magic Items, Monsters), as well as opening the Forums.

The second and third phases will introduce the Character Builder and Sheet, Homebrew, and the first pass of Campaign Management. We will push those live in the next several weeks ramping up to launch.

Hope to see you all there on Monday!

Good luck to you guys!

I've signed up for the Beta and passing the news onto my friends.

Hope you can escape the negative gravity of past attempts at implementing this sort of digital suite for D&D.

EN World Reviews

Unlike 4th Edition, 5th Edition D&D has had a much slower pace for book releases. While some fans grumble, the change has worked in WotC's favor, making each release an event, and interest is doubled for source books like Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes.

Here at EN World, I'mlookingatall-agestabletoprole-playinggames, board games, and card games. Do they engage the players at the kids' gaming table? Would they cut it at the adults' table? Are they genuinely fun for every age? A Friend In Need by Jenny Jarzabski from Playground Adventures is a 26-page "stand-alone mini-adventure for […] 1st level characters. Recommended for ages six and up, this module includes adventure content as well as advice for gaming with children." While this review covers the Pathfinder version of the adventure, there is also a 5e version available.

If you want to experience mysteries in Tales from the Loop, Our Friends the Machines is for you. This full color 104 page hardcover includes three complete adventures, eight short adventure locations based on classic 80s songs, four iconic machines from the world of the Loop including blueprints, and a guide to creating your own setting for the game, complete with the Norfolk Broads, a UK-based Loop.

Apocalypse World is the first game to use what we now call the Apocalypse World Engine, published in 2010. It's an innovative system that builds the world as part of character creation, and where the GM (here called the MC) has essentially the same rules as every other player. The second edition of the game was Kickstarted in 2016, and brought the game a bit more in line with the dozens of games that came after.

I reviewed Eloy Lasanta of Third Eye Games'Pip System Corebook on EN World, interviewed him about his AMP Year Four Kickstarter, and talked about my brief run-in with him at AndoCon. Every Third Eye game I've tried has improved my gaming table. With that in mind, when he sent the quickstart for his latest project and Kickstarter, Part-Time Gods 2nd Edition, I knew I wanted to try it out.